The joy of the Easter celebration turned to tragedy when two young boys, believed to be brothers, drowned in the notorious Bay Hall area during a church outing on Saturday afternoon.
Initial reports were that the boys and a friend had waded towards a buoy close to the shore.
However, the victims encountered a sudden drop and disappeared from sight.
A police dive team, led by Colonel Kobus Olivier, and an NSRI crew searched for the bodies until sunset and resumed the search early Sunday morning, covering the water area between the Pelican Island road and the Zululand Multi Sport Club.
The bodies were eventually found and retrieved at noon yesterday (Sunday).
The tragic drownings add to a growing list of fatalities at the bathing area and will surely lead to increase calls for preventative measures to be implemented.
On 6 February a 12-year-old local schoolgirl Beth Laas almost drowned saving her six-yearold sister Erin who disappeared beneath the water.
WATCH: Police search for missing boys
